Intellectual disability - specialists and information

Intellectual disability is the stagnant or incomplete development of cognitive, linguistic, motor and social skills. It is associated with a reduced intelligence quotient and can be divided into different degrees of severity.

Below you will find further information and selected specialists for intellectual disability.

What is intellectual disability?

Intellectual disability is defined as stagnant or incomplete development of mental abilities. In particular, skills that contribute to the level of intelligence, such as cognition, language, motor and social skills, are impaired. The term intellectual disability is also used synonymously. It is estimated that there are around 400,000 people with reduced intelligence in Germany.

A reduction in intelligence is a lifelong functional impairment of the brain @ Yakobchuk Olena /AdobeStock

What are the different forms?

There are different degrees of severity:

• Mild intellectual disability is characterized by an IQ of around 50 to 69. Those affected can usually speak with slight limitations, carry out everyday tasks relatively independently and perform simple practical activities. In this case, there are relatively few recognizable physical causes for the reduction in intelligence.
• In cases of moderate (IQ approx. 35 to 49) or severe (IQ approx. 20 to 34) intellectual impairment, language is significantly less developed, as are independence in everyday life and motor skills. Some of those affected therefore need lifelong supervision.
• In the case of severe intellectual disability (IQ less than 20), those affected are limited to the maximum. In this case, they hardly acquire any linguistic abilities or skills.

The more severe an intellectual disability is, the more frequently accompanying physical symptoms such as sensory dysfunction, epileptic seizures etc. occur. In addition, more severe forms often have an organic cause (e.g. chromosomal defects, early childhood deficiency symptoms) than milder forms.

Girl with severe intellectual disability @ mjowra /AdobeStock

What is the treatment for intellectual disability?

There is no treatment for intellectual disability per se. Every treatment is aimed at increasing the skills of the person affected within their individual framework in order to enable them to lead as fulfilling a life as possible. Exercise and curative education programs with the involvement of caregivers are particularly useful for this purpose.

Speech therapy aims to improve communication skills @ Dan Race /AdobeStock

Behavioral therapy and educational measures are also indicated to combat the frequent additional behavioral problems such as self-harm or the destruction of objects. In cases of extreme hyperactivity or aggression towards oneself or others, psychotropic drugs are also sometimes used.